The evolution of cell phone coverage

103% of Americans today own activated phones, which means that many people are carrying two phones or more in this smartphone-centric country. Reportedly, many business people are stuck carrying one strictly-business cell phone and a second personal smartphone for family emergencies and casual calling. This is one reason that forward-thinking companies have reconsidered the BYOD (bring your own device) method of communication to keep workers happy and reduce upfront company cellular costs, and also allows workers to reduce their phone weight back down to one device.

A few short years ago people were carrying multiple cell phones in order to host different carriers: one service could work in the city while another would connect faster in the country, due largely to the sparse placement of cellular transmission towers.

You may also be interested in these articles:

The evolution of cellular coverage has occurred so quickly that even teenagers remember the “good old days” when prepaid phones were a new option. Today, teens with an HTC 8X Windows phone or Android device can easily identify the quality increases between each phone upgrade (and in the USA, the average duration of phone ownership is 18 months).

91.4 million of the world’s 1.08 billion smartphone owners are in the United States (in addition to 194.6 un-smart phone owners in the USA). While these numbers are anticipated to increase dramatically in the short term, the industry understands that the market will be saturated with phones eventually.

However, for now the race to provide the best coverage and phone quality directly corresponds to sales and profits. In fact, wireless revenue has been steadily increased since 1997 (from $25.6 billion to $178.4 billion); but can this trend continue once the market (and coverage map) are saturated with service?

Learn more surprising stats and facts from this info graphic about the evolution of cell phone coverage so that you can better understand how your device became the well-supported product that it is today. Knowing how far phones have come in the last decade will make you appreciate all five bars you can have on a 4G network today.

Author Bio: Joseph Stark Jr. is a freelance writer and blogger by day, focusing on technology and web design niches. By night he is a tech junkie, gym member, and avid comic book enthusiast. Friend him on Facebook and say hey.